Through the Heart Bonds
by GlitchGirl23
Summary: It is the national holiday 'Pokemon Appreciation Day.' Ash,Misty,Brock,May,Drew,Dawn and even Paul are having a picnic to celebrate their time with their pokemon. During the festivities Team Rocket appears and kidnaps everyone! What is going on! Read ;
1. Prologue

**J: ..."Avoiding eye contact"...I know! I know! I have all my other fanfictions to be working on but it's not my fault! Blame the Pokemon fanfictions that just happened to come up on my screen and demanded that I read them! IvyBean's 'Blue Ribbons' was particularly demanding! It made me read every chapter! AND if I didn't get this out of my head I would have dream about Pokemon for the next three weeks! The dream I had last night was particularly weird -.-" So...yea...RR please? Ahha **

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN DA POKEMON PEOPLE, THE POKEMON, I ONLY OWN THE CRAZY DOCTOR!  
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Through The Heart Bonds**

**Prologue**

"Sir, wishes to see you about the lastest research he has been conducting." A Team Rocket grunt had entered Giovanni's office to deliver this request. Giovanni gave a nod and sent the grunt on his way, _'At last some news, he is far past due for an update. If he gives me crap I'll make sure the old fool never sees the light of day again.'_

Giovanni's thoughts reflected the permanent scowl set upon his face as he stomped through the halls of his newest base of operations for Team Rocket. Any grunts out and about bowed in respect to their leader as he passed. When Giovanni started Team Rocket he relished in the feeling of these people bowing to him as subjects would bow to an emperor, over the years the feeling diminished. The sight of grunts alone bowing was no longer enough for him, Giovanni wanted more, he wanted to see every person of every region bow in respect and worship him. In order to make this dream come true he had captured the most brilliant men and women of the world and brought them to his current base in Hearthome City. Among those brilliant minds he had captured a man that all had considered insane because of the theories and ideas he ranted about. Giovanni had found a paper of one his theories and he had found it interesting. was more than eager to work for Giovanni when he promised to fund him for any of his future research, in return he would give Giovanni the means to meet his goal of world domination, Rongstun had absolutely no problem with this condition.

Rongstun had been working for Giovanni for over two years and at last he had something to show for the money Giovanni had spent on the man.

Entering the lab Giovanni felt nothing towards the numerous pokemon that glared at him from behind their cage walls. They were nothing but tools that were abundant for use, if one died then they were replaced with another of the same breed, simple as that.

"Ah, Sir thank you for sparing some time to see me. I will make it worth your while I promise!" Dr. Rongstun, a man in his 50's, was completely bald, liver spotted, filled with false bronze teeth, and stood as a complete mass of muscle at 6 feet 2 inches.

Refusing to look up into his sharp green eyes Giovanni responded in his gruff tone," It better be, or you're gone."

"Then please, come this way so your time is not wasted more than it should be. As you know these past few years I have been searching for the ultimate means to control pokemon that may or may not already be owned by a trainer. Previous studies had shown that even under mind control a pokemon could retain it's own will, especially if it were in the contact with it's trainer. This bothered me the most and so I chose to explore it. It is this specific researching that has lead to my latest and greatest invention that will bring you this much closer to controlling the world. Master Giovanni, I present to you, the Bond Blazer." As Dr. Rongstun had explained what Giovanni already knew he had led him to the further part of the lab where only he had access. The door had opened to reveal two large cages. One held a Nidoqueen and the other a Nidoking. The Nidoqueen,on closer inspection had a small purple gem planted into it's ear, the Nidoking wore a choker around it's neck with the same purple gem. The two fully evolved pokemon snorted and growled at the sight of the doctor, the Nidoking gripped the bars of its cage and began pulling with all its strength. A twisted smirk spread across Dr. Rongstun's face, walking over to a control panel he advised his benefactor," If you would, please watch what happens when I administer some discipline to the Nidoking and observe the Nidoqueen as well." Giovanni took a step back in order to put both pokemon into his sights.

An electric prod came from the floor of cage and stabbed into Nidoking's thigh to electrocute him, Giovanni was interested to see that the Nidoking alone did not suffer. As the electricity was administered to the Nidoking the Nidoqueen reacted as if it were her receiving the punishment. Once Nidoking had released it's hold on the cage bars the prod retreated back into the floor, both Nidoking and Nidoqueen were crumpled to the cage floor panting from the pain. Giovanni was smiling in content as he asked," How is this done? Explain this to me Dr. Rongstun."

"Of course. First let me inform you that these Nidoqueen and Nidoking are mate, thus they share a strong bond of the heart. With an injection of their blood placed into each other as well as the ear piece and the choker as conductors I was able to make the invisible bond a physical part of their beings. As long as the ear piece and choker are on the two that have had their blood traded whatever pain one feels, so does the other. BUT it can be manipulated that if the ear piece wearer were to receive pain then the choker wearer would not, if it were reversed and the one wearing the choker were harmed then they would both feel it. Imagine sir, what would happen if we were to do this with a pokemon and it's trainer? The pokemon, with it's strong attachment to it's trainer, would not like to put the trainer into harm and would obey any commands we gave, and vise versa. I have yet to try it with humans, but with a word from you anyone of your pathetic grunts would make excellent guinea pigs." Dr. Rongstun was in such awe of his own creation that he did not notice the ever growing smile of ill intentions spreading across Giovanni's face.

Once the doctor had finished speaking Giovanni spoke the thoughts that had begun to form in his twisted mind," No, non of my grunts shall be used. I know the perfect guinea pigs for you to use. They will be delivered to you within the week, prepare three ear pieces and four chokers meant to fit humans. Teenagers in specific."

"At once Giovanni, I will prepare for our guests arrival and be sure they will be taken care of with the most hospitality as you deem fit for them." Dr. Rongstun chuckled darkly to himself as he toddled off to begin collecting the appropriate materials.

Left alone Giovanni whispered to himself outloud," At last, I shall bring you to your knees before me you infuriating children." He left the lab then to go and make the call to a certain team that should be able to hand this task, since they were so close to the test subjects.


	2. Be Grateful Jerk!

**J: You have no idea how surprised I am with my progress on this fanfic. I mean, after the first three seasons of Pokemon I got a little fed up with the show since it's so repetitive! I love the manga, even though I've read very little of it ahha. But this really wasn't something I had planned on ever doing in my life, just goes to show how much obsession hopping can mess with you. NOW I MUST GIVE THANKS!**

**THANKS TO: Splitheart1120( good catch on, though I kinda made it obvious ahha), IvyBean, pokemonSLR, lightwolfheart (your non signed in name cannot be used since I know it's you :P) and AnimexLuver4Ever.**

**DISCLAIMER: ME NO OWNEE THE PEOPLES!**

**P.S. Am I spelling the pokemon god's name right?  
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Chapter One – "Be Grateful Jerk!"**

"Today is perfect!" Dawn jubilantly cheered this after exiting the Pokemon Centre to find the sky was crystal blue with a small collection of puffy white clouds. There was a gentle breeze that was strong enough to shift her blue locks even with it still damp from Piplup's bubblebeam.

"You're right, I guess Arceus wants Pokemon Appreciation Day to be a good one too." May giggled this while coming up beside Dawn carrying a large wicker basket filled with food.

"If Arceus can keep the pokemon from finding out about the surprise picnic then he really is blessing today. It took everything Brock had to keep Azurill from following after us." Misty, carrying two smaller wicker baskets came out of the Pokemon Centre after them.

All three girls had decided that Pokemon Appreciation Day was a big enough holiday to dress up for. Instead of their usual two piece outfits the girls were dressed in sun dresses that emphasized their natural colours. Dawn wore a strapless knee length light blue sun dress with a large blue ribbon around her waist and tied in a big bow at the back. May's dress was also knee length and was a light shade of green with little leaves bordering the bottom hem and the straps that tied up around her neck. Misty's dress was a tad shorter than the other two and instead of a solid colour she had tie dyed her dress so it started as a vibrant orange from the bottom right and slowly faded up into a peach colour by the time it reached her left shoulder, and to make a bit of a statement she had dyed the three inch shoulder straps purple.

Giggling at the thought of Brock running around after little Azurill the girls made their way to their designated picnic location. They had spent all of yesterday pouring over maps looking for the perfect spot and much to their great convenience the perfect spot was just a quick walk from the Pokemon Centre they were staying in. Spinning around to walk backwards Dawn beamed at her two female companions," It was really great of you guys to come all the out here to celebrate with us, you have no idea how much it means to have girls around to talk to!"

"We do know." Misty and May chorused this without meaning to, making it all that much funnier.

"Ash and Brock are lucky we were such patient girls travelling with him. More than once I wanted to leave them, I even considered travelling with DREW of all people I was so desperate some days!" May ranted this looking absolutely appalled at the memory of thinking such things.

Her voice and expression sly Dawn asked," Are you sure it was just Ash's stupidity that made you think that way?"

At May's sudden red face Misty raised an eyebrow and verbally pounced on her friend," What? No way! You actually like him don't you? I never would have guessed with the way you guys go at it."

"I-I don't like-!"

"MAY!"

May was cut off from her denial from the just mentioned devil running after them and calling out to her. Catching up to the girls he went straight to May with a checkered blanket folded up in his arms. Holding up the blanket he informed her," You forgot the blanket, the one thing you were suppose to carry and you forget it. I have to wonder how you've managed to keep your pokemon alive." Drew had to play up the moment and exaggerated things by flicking his hair out of his face and looking as if he actually thought May was unable to do anything.

"For your information that's the back up blanket in case this one isn't big enough for everyone to sit on! So don't you dare try making me look a fool!" To prove her point May opened the basket to show Drew that there was indeed a blanket inside.

"I would never in a million years dream of making you look like a fool May. A token of my apology, I will return to the Pokemon Centre with this blanket immediately. I look forward to poisoning myself with your home cooked food." Drew pulled another impossible feat and produced a rose out of thin air to then give it to May. With a bow he quickly walked back the way he had come, leaving May rather flustered, usually Drew tried to make their fights last longer, then she remembered the rest of what he said," I'M GOING TO SHOVE MY COOKING DOWN YOUR THROAT JUST FOR SAYING THAT DREW!" Cheeks red from anger May turned forward and began stomping towards the picnic site, Dawn and Misty right behind her trying their best not to be heard snickering. Neither girl could deny that Drew and May interacted like an old married couple,which was really cute if you looked at it from a certain perspective.

A two minute walk through a group of trees later and the girls were left breathless. On the map they had seen the spot as a little clearing surrounded by a small cluster of trees with a small cliff on the west side. They had expected just grass and small clusters of flowers. What they found instead was a hidden treasure of nature. The grass was lush and green and moved like the ocean as the breeze passed through, species of flowers they had never seen before appeared as fish bobbing up and down in the water. "It's official, Arceus loves us today." Misty whispered this just loud enough to be heard by the other two, anything louder would make her feel as if she was ruining something special.

Dawn took the initiative and ran into the clearing to do a cartwheel then deliberately land on her back. The grass she flattened beneath her was soft and barely noticeable against her exposed skin. Letting out a pleased sigh Dawn opened her eyes to look up at the sky, only to be met by Weavile's bright red eyes. Letting out a little squeak Dawn sat up sending Weavile backing up from her. A hand over her heart she stuttered," Wh-what are you doing here Weavile? Where's Paul?"

"Dawn, you know this Weavile?" Misty asked this while coming up with May when they had seen the Weavile rush over to Dawn once it had come from the cliff.

Weavile, the pokemon that usually looked so cool and collected while around Paul, was acting frantic. It grabbed onto Dawn's wrist and began dragging her towards the cliff where it had just come from. To answer Misty Dawn called over her shoulder," You know the guy that Ash complains about all the time, this is his Weavile. I think something happened, it looks worried. Go and get the guys, I'm going to go with Weavile." Misty and May exchanged a worried glance with each other then dropped their baskets and took off for the the Pokemon Centre.

Her full attention given to Weavile Dawn allowed the pokemon to lead her up the cliff and into the surrounding woods. The further they went int the more Dawn began to worry,'_ Something must have happened to Paul for his Weavile to be so frantic. What could have happened? Paul may be a heartless jerk towards his pokemon, but he's still a really strong trainer._' Weavile pulled Dawn around one more tree and Dawn's fears were confirmed. Paul was up sitting back against a tree, his left sleeve and left pant leg were tattered revealing claw shaped gashes that were poorly bandaged. Running up to him she cried out," Paul! What happened?"

Paul had appeared to be unconscious but he really was just trying to relax and ignore the throbbing pain. He'd let Weavile out earlier to try and train it despite his own condition. Instead of working on it's ice beam the Weavile had run off, leaving Paul to curse at the weakling. The last thing Paul expected was for Weavile to have left to get help, yet the help that it brought back was the troublesome girl that followed the pathetic trainer around as his fangirl. Immediately scowling at his Weavile Paul growled," Non of your concern Troublesome. Weavile, what did you think you were doing. I ordered you to train, not bring more problems."

'SLAP!' Paul had turned away from Dawn's own scowl when he had told her it wasn't any of her business. He didn't see the brief expression of sadness on Weavile's face when he had chastised it for bringing him help. Dawn had, and that had been the last straw for her patience. She marched up to Paul and slapped him right across the face as hard as she possibly could.

Absolutely stunned Paul put a hand on his now stinging cheek and looked at the girl like she had just grown a second head. She didn't stop with just the slap, she grabbed the front of Paul's jacket and actually lifted him off the ground so he was on eye level with her. Her face mere inches from his she growled through clenched teeth," Do you know what day it is you jerk? It's Pokemon Appreciation Day! The one day where you're suppose to let your pokemon have a break, you give them a day to themselves, you give them little gifts, you do SOMETHING to show your pokemon that you appreciate everything they do for you. You, the one guy that treats his pokemon like crap, should be very grateful to your pokemon! What just happened is a perfect example! Weavile, the pokemon you probably put a lot of pressure on, sees that you're hurt and disobeys instructions in order to get you help, because it CARES about you! You can stay here and rot for all I care right now!" She dropped the purple haired teen on his ass and marched off back towards the cliff.

Weavile watched all this occur, when Dawn dropped Paul and stomped away it rushed to Paul's side in fear of his injuries hurting more from the rough treatment. Paul's face twisted in a wince but he made no noise of protest, instead he grumbled,"Damn it...Reggie is going to kick my ass when he finds out I forgot about today."

"PAUL!" Paul inwardly groaned at the sound of Ash's voice, he really was getting abused for his ignorance.

A second later Ash, Drew, and Brock came into sight and went to his side. Having been advised beforehand Brock had brought along a medical kit. He said nothing about the hand print on Paul's face since they'd passed Dawn on their way here, and instead asked," Something happened with your Ursaring didn't it?"

"Not mine. A wild one thought my Ursaring wanted to take over it's territory. Instead of letting them fight it out I put Ursaring back in it's pokeball and made a run for it, I wasn't fast enough to evade one of it's slash attacks." Ash was thrown for a loop by Paul openly telling them what happened._'Dawn must have done a number on him if he's willing to let us help.'_ Ash thought this as Paul took off his jacket and rolled up his pant leg so Brock could get a better look at the injuries.

Taking off the bandages Brock let out a sigh of relief," You treated them well. There's no sign of infection but you should still get Nurse Joy to look at them. The Pokemon Centre isn't too far, we'll help you get there-"

"I don't need your help, I'll get there by myself." Paul cut Brock off before he could finish his offer of assistance.

Brock was usually a patient person when it came to Paul, but this time he wouldn't have any of his nonsense," You're in no condition to refuse assistance Paul. You either cooperate willingly or Drew's Roseraid puts you to sleep, it's your choice."

"Rrrgh. Fine! But I won't owe any of you losers anything after this, got it?" Paul snapped this while staggering to his feet. Brock and Drew, knowing Ash wouldn't bother to help, went to either side and put his arms around their shoulders. Weavile collected Paul's knapsack and followed after the boys quickly.

Ash was ahead of the slow moving group, so he had to look over his shoulder in order to tell Paul," After Nurse Joy takes care of your wounds...You're welcome to join our party." It was Brock and Drew who were thrown for a loop this time. Both of the boys had been thinking of offering Paul an invitation, but were worried that Ash would throw a fit. Hearing him be the one to offer just didn't seem to fit into the world's natural order of balance.

Paul was going to tell him to shove it, but a flash of Dawn's pissed off face and a recollection of her words made him stop. Drew and Brock nearly dropped Paul altogether when they heard him mutter," Whatever Loser." In Paul language, that translated to a maybe.


	3. Starting to Get Troublesome

**J: I'm doing pretty good with this, though I wish I could get the length of the chapters longer without putting stuff in that would belong in the next chapter. I'm really happy with the reviews and watches I'm getting :3 Oh, and I want the reader's opinions. What should I do with Brock? AND, I'm gonna do what I did with my Naruto fanfic that has been neglected as of late (can feel lightwolfheart's intense glare) starting next chapter you guys can choose who does the disclaimer, it gets lonely in the AN section TT_TT.**

**THANKS TO: Splitheart1120**(yes, there will definitely be ikarishipping, as well as contestshipping and pokeshipping.) **lightwolfheart **(success! And...I MIGHT do some Naruto typing next...MIGHT) **IvyBean **(Next chapter I promise there will be various shipping moment) **AnimexLuver4Ever **(You are welcome, I hope you enjoy this chapter too.) **Mednin **(Ahha, don't worry I'm going to try and keep this one constantly updated as long as it doesn't help me procastinate too much on my essays lol. And thank you for your very enthusiastic review xD)

**Disclaimer: ME NO OWNEE POKEMON PEOPLE OR POKEMON, SO YOU CAN'T SUE ME! HA!**

**P.S. I apologize in advance for any spelling errors that might happen, Pokemon names are underlined as errors so I started ignoring the underlining -.-"  
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Chapter Two - Starting to Get Troublesome  
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When the boys came into the Pokemon Center with Paul they were immediately met by an unimpressed Misty and May. Drew, Ash and Brock sweat dropped and felt bad for whoever was about to receive hell. Both sets of blue, blue green eyes fell onto Paul's hand print marked face. They opened their mouths to start their tirade only to be cut off by Nurse Joy rushing up saying," Oh my! What happened, those look terrible." Misty and May leaned more to the left to see what Nurse Joy was seeing, and what they saw made them completely forget their rage.

The two girls only watched as Paul was brought over to the emergency ward for humans by Drew and Brock. Once they were out of sight Ash asked the girls,"You looked like you were about to rip Paul a new one until you saw his injuries. What were you going to say?"

"We were about to tell Paul off for upsetting Dawn enough to make her resort to violence, really strong violence since she sprained her wrist. But...I can't believe she slapped him when he had those kind of injuries."Misty let this all out in an irritated sigh.

_'Note to self: Fake pain or injury to avoid future female attacks.' _Ash quickly put this away under useful people information then turned his attention to Brock and Drew who were back from the emergency ward. Running a hand through his spiky hair Brock informed the three," Nurse Joy said he's definitely going to need stitches and a prescription of pain killers for the next few weeks."

"You should have seen his face when he was told no training for the next few days." Drew snickered this with a pleased smile on his face that momentarily made May's heart flutter off beat.

"Wish I could have seen his face." Ash mumbled this under his breathe, only to earn a light flick to the ear from Misty.

"Where's Dawn?" Brock had looked around and found that the blue haired coordinator was nowhere to be seen.

"Chancey took her to get a wrap and an ice pack put on her wrist. Apparently she almost fractured her wrist bone when she slapped Paul. All we got out of her was that she would join us back at the picnic once her wrist was numb." May answered this while self consciously adjusting her bangs when Drew had cast her a quick look from the corner of his eye that she had caught.

The boys nodded in understanding since they had endured their own injuries before and knew that pain could really ruin a good time. As they walked out of the Pokemon Centre to return to their pokemon in the clearing the group of five simultaneously thought,_' Hopefully Paul and Dawn don't run into each other again.'_

"Chansey, chan, chansey."Nurse Joy's Chansey showed Dawn how to adjust the ice pack strap so it didn't cause more pain.

"Thanks Chansey, I'll be sure to be careful and I'll put it in the freezer whenever I can." Dawn reached into her pocket and pulled out a couple poffins. Chansey happily accepted them and toddled off to see what else needed to be done.

Looking down at her wrapped and strapped wrist Dawn sighed, _'My conscious feels worse than my wrist. Jerk or not Paul was seriously hurt, and my treatment probably made things worse for him. I have to apologize as soon as I see him again. But how do you apologize after acting like THAT?' _Openly groaning Dawn left the kitchen and went for the doors, spending time with her Pokemon would be really nice at that moment.

She almost stepped out the doors when she felt a tug on her dress, turning around she was once more met by Paul's Weavile, only this time it was holding Paul's knapsack. Crouching down to eye level Dawn asked kindly," You want to give him his knapsack, don't you?"When Weavile nodded Dawn let out a small sigh, how was it that Weavile always found HER to help out, it probably knew she thought it was a beautiful Pokemon and that she couldn't resist anything it asked of her.

Head hung in defeat she took the knapsack from Weavile and followed after it back into the Centre to the Emergency ward. She made sure to knock first before opening the door enough to poke her head in," Um, Nurse Joy? Is it okay if I come in?"

" Do you need something Dawn?" Nurse Joy came around the corner of the small corridor leading to the main part of the emergency ward while wiping her fingers on a cloth. Dawn felt a twinge of guilt when she saw that it was blood, Paul's blood from the stitches he needed.

Keeping her eyes downcast Dawn stepped further into the hall and held up Paul's knapsack saying," Ah, no. I just wanted to give this to Paul, his Weavile was carrying it for him."

"Sure, but please refrain from slapping him again." Nurse Joy said the last bit in a whisper along with a wink which just made Dawn chuckle awkwardly with a blush.

Nurse Joy gave her a kind squeeze on the shoulder and left the ward to check on the mentioned Weavile. Dawn sucked up whatever remaining courage she had and rigidly shuffled towards the corner that Nurse Joy had come around. Stopping just short of turning she quietly called out," Um, Paul? A-are you decent?"

"What do you want this time Troublesome? A swing with a fist this time?" Paul's snarky remark made Dawn blush a deeper shade from shame, she really shouldn't have slapped him like she had.

Since she didn't get an answer about his decency she decided not to risk it and make things even more awkward. She held the knapsack out at arms reach so Paul could see it, her voice still meek she whispered," Weavile wanted to make sure you got this back...I'm sorry for slapping you Paul, I just wasn't thinking at the time. Sorry." The guilt starting to build up she quickly put the knapsack down on the floor and booked it out of the ward to go to her room.

Paul was sitting up on a stretcher and was staring at the knapsack. Before the annoying girl had put it down he had distinctly heard a a quaver in her voice, meaning she just left to go ball her eyes out in her room. Using his good hand Paul ran a hand through his purple hair to get it out of his eyes, outloud to himself he grumbled," Wonder if Pathetic knows he's travelling with a girl that's emotionally unstable? Not that I care any...Ugh, I better go to their stupid party or Reggie will never give back my pokemon AND still kick my ass." Worrying more about the second issue than the first Paul hoisted himself off of the stretcher stiffly in order to keep weight off his stitched up leg. Nurse Joy had been kind enough to offer him a set of crutches to use while he stayed at the Pokemon Centre for the next few days.

Hobbling over to his knapsack he grudgingly pulled out the shirt he hated wearing most, but still kept on hand for incidents such as these. It was a simple black muscle shirt that had no sleeves , he usually only wore it when it was unbearably hot or when he wanted to work out with his pokemon. He found it to be bothersome piece of clothing to wear around other people, females in particular, since they immediately started to act like idiots and even approached him to ask him out on dates. He hated that the most. Paul had vowed at the beginning of his journey that he would never start a relationship with a girl unless she somehow met his requirements. And most females came short from the very first requirement alone. Any female he started dating had to be strong and sturdy enough to tolerate his wandering life style until he finished his journey to become a pokemon master. Thinking about this requirement while he also removed his destroyed pants to replace them with cargo shorts a flash back to Troublesome slapping him and even lifting his full weight of 150 off the ground invaded his mind. Vigorously shaking his head to get rid of the thought he swung his knapsack on his back and grabbed the crutches.

Getting out to the main lobby he found his Weavile patiently waiting for him by the front counter. He would normally tell Weavile that it should have brought the knapsack in itself but held his tongue, it was Pokemon Appreciation Day, so instead he gave it a nod of acknowledgement and returned it to it's Pokeball. He wanted to get going to the stupid party so he could get it over with sooner, but the idiots hadn't told him where it was. Groaning inside he turned to Nurse Joy and politely asked," Nurse Joy do you know where the people that brought me in went for their party?"

"No, I'm sorry I don't know where they are. But you could always ask Dawn, she was in her room still when I did my rounds a minute ago." Nurse Joy thought she was being helpful and didn't seem to notice the visible crinkle to Paul's forehead of distaste at the thought of trying to communicate with the big cry baby.

Seeing no other option he asked for her room number and toddled off to deal with yet another awkward moment.

**-Meanwhile Not Too Far Away -**

"Hey, look! It's a Delibird, did either of you catch something to give to the boss while I was taking a nap?" Meowth pointed to the sky with a claw to show his two human companions the approach of a red and white bird holding a sack. Jessie and James shook their heads with their small ration of bread in their mouths.

The Delibird landed neatly next to the group of two humans and various pokemon. Waddling over to Meowth the Delibird reached into it's sack and pulled out a small television, before it took off the Delibird made sure to wish all the Pokemon a happy Pokemon Appreciation Day. The whole gang of Team Rocket crowded around Meowth and the tiny T.V to see what was up. Meowth hit the power button and jumped along with the rest of the audience when their boss Giovanni appeared on the screen. His scowl as intense as it had been the last time they had seen it he cut right to chase," I'm giving you a new mission and must be completed today. If you fail I will not only fire you but throw you to my collection of blood thirsty Caravanah and Sharpedos. You are to capture Ash Ketchum and any friends he may have with him at present, as well as all his pokemon. I want those children here before sun up tomorrow, am I understood?"

Jessie, James and Meowth squeaked out an intimidated," Yes, sir." The screen then blacked out and the T.V exploded into a million pieces.

"Well, this is certainly different. What do you think the Boss wants with the twerp and his friends?" James asked this outloud even though it was more of a question to himself.

Throwing the last of her bread to her Pokemon Jessie grumbled," What does it matter? If anything it makes our original mission easier."

"What do you mean Jessie?"

"If you think back to all our previous attempts to capture Pikachu or any other Pokemon from the twerps we usually lose because the twerps come after us with any other pokemon they might have on them. If we capture the twerps and twerpettes at the same time but separately from their pokemon then there's no reason for them to come after us and blow us up." Jessie smiled in pride having shone this bit of intelligence upon her friends.

Eyes sparkling with hope of living for tomorrow James and Meowth went straight to work compiling what they would need to accomplish this devious new mission.


	4. Placing Bets

**J: This has probably been the most successful month for updates in my whole life! I mean, I got TWO chapters of my Naruto fanfic up in the past week or so, I'm updating this again AND I'm co-authoring a new Naruto fanfic with me bud Lightwolfheart, it's under her account so go looking there or search the title 'Entertaining' if you're also a Naruto fan.**

**THANKS TO: Spiltheart1120 **(I believe many hate Giovanni, but I really couldn't think of another villan.) **Mednin **(I repeat, love the enthusiasm, I promise I won't stop working on this, if anything it will just suffer the same pain as most of my other fanfics and not get updated for a very long time.) **AnimexLuver4Ever **(It's going to be very subtle, but yours and many other's wishes for ikarishipping shall be granted ;3) **IvyBean **(You are always welcome for the reviews I give for your fanfic, and I hope you like this chapter as well.) **Riolu and Co **(Brock is present, and the mental image I leave off with will make you and others go lol) **and DGMSilverAirHead03 **(That review, though short still made my day when I read it :3I hope you keep liking it.)

**Disclaimer: ME NO OWNEE POKEMONS AND PEOPLES FROM THE SHOW!**

**P.S. I repeat! You readers can chose someone to do the disclaimer!  
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Chapter Three – Placing Bets**

"Are you seriously telling the truth that you made this and not your parents or Brock?" Drew asked this for the third time holding up the rose shaped omelet he'd just taken a bite out of.

Her cheeks growing red from rage May yelled in his face," Yes! I made the rose omelets Drew! All by myself!"

Drew turned the omelet this way and that as if searching for a price sticker or any signature of someone else having made the food. Smiling he popped the rest of the omelet into his mouth, this made May turn away pouting," Stupid jerk should have just said he liked it."

"But what's the fun in that? The look on your face is far too enchanting when you're mad." May was lucky that she had turned away, otherwise Drew would have seen her face go three different shades of red in embarrassment.

"Hey Ambipalm, give me back my hat!" Ash was mowing down on the sandwiches Misty had made using cooked tofu soaked in soy sauce and covered in a sauce she'd made using tomato berries and barbeque sauce when Ambipalm jumped over his head and snatched up his hat.

He moved to get up but was held back by Misty putting a hand on his shoulder, looking at her in confusion she answered his unasked question," It's not like Ambipalm is going to go anywhere, and besides...You look better without it." She shifted her gaze from Ash's face to the ground with a slight blush on her face.

Ash blinked a couple times staring down at his best friend, slowly sitting down he smiled," I guess you're right, and the breeze feels nice." The smile on Ash's face was so genuinely at peace that Misty had to remember how to breathe.

Misty was so focused on Ash she didn't see StarRaptor sneak up behind her until it grabbed hold of her sparkly blue scrunchy and pulled it out of her hair. Giving a little yelp she spun around to glare at the large bird pokemon which happily flew back to the other pokemon with it's sparkly prize. When Ash chuckled she turned back around, stopping him mid laugh. A slight blush crossed his cheeks while he thought,_' Whoa...since when has Misty's hair been that long?...Why doesn't she wear it down more often?' _"Y-you know, you should leave your hair down more. You look...different, like good different."

"Ash, if you're going to tell a girl she's beautiful, then just say she's absolutely breathe taking, not good different." Drew had gotten up to give his pokemon a chance to taste the treats he'd made (with Brock's help) just for today had overheard the odd compliment that Ash was giving to Misty. Feeling the need to be a good friend Drew put in this bit of advice while handing Misty a yellow rose instead of a red one which he solely gave to May.

Blushing at what Drew was implying Ash turned away with a scowl on his face, unable to face Misty with her own bright blush on her cheeks, a blush that Ash couldn't help but think was quite cute on his friend.

Brock, sitting across from the others with his cute little Happiny in his arms, watched all this occur with an inward shake of his head. _' Drew shouldn't give attention to other developing couples when he should be working on his own with May. All his teasing and taunting is obviously a front to hide his own insecurity with his growing emotions. At least girls are more straight forward once they work up the nerve. Hm, speaking of couples...'_

"Pip! Piplup!" The excited cry from Dawn's Piplup drew everyone's attention to what it was looking at.

"Hey, it's Dawn...Wow, she's actually walking with Paul. She must have apologized to him...I hope." Misty started off by announcing to the group the obvious that they could all see, and ended her comments in a whisper so as not to draw negative attention from the approaching male.

Coming from the direction of the Pokemon Centre was a slightly down cast looking Dawn walking next to Paul who hobbled along on his crutches looking quite disgruntled. Piplup couldn't wait for it's trainer to get to it at the pace she was walking. Running over to her Piplup immediately noticed that her eyes were red rimmed from crying and her usual chipper aura wasn't as strong as it had been that morning. Being a pokemon with pride Piplup would not tolerate anyone making it's trainer upset, turning to the purple haired male next to her Piplup told him that he was a mean human for making its trainer so upset. Only the pokemon understood what Piplup was saying, but to the humans it was only apparent that it was not happy with Paul.

Paul gave Piplup a dark scowl and simply walked past it to take a sit closer to the pokemon than the humans. He had agreed to go to the picnic party, but he never said anything about being buddy buddy with everyone. As comfortable as he could make himself with a sore aching leg Paul released all his pokemon so they could join the others for the food and though he himself wasn't a socialite pokemon were still known to be more content with others.

Having been given the brush off Piplup was ready to throw a whirlpool at the mean male, it only held back when Dawn crouched down to smile at Piplup and say in her usual comforting way," It's okay Piplup, Paul didn't do anything, I made myself sad. Don't worry, I'll cheer up in no time okay? Go back to Buneary and Pachirisu to make sure they don't attack Paul, please?" Piplup, didn't move until Dawn gave it a gentle petting on its head. Going back to the other pokemon Piplup did as it's trainer asked and reassured Pachirisu and Buneary that their trainer was going to be fine and that attacking the stupid purple haired male would only lead to a bad Pokemon Appreciation Day. Pachirisu took a little more reassurance than Buneary but eventually both were calm and went back to socializing with the others, and by socializing it was really placing bets on when their trainers would finally get together.

As it stood Pikachu, Azurill, Infernape, and StarRaptor were betting that before Misty would take the initiative and get together with Ash. Most of Brock's and May's pokemon thought that was hysterical since everyone knew that Ash was oblivious to his attraction to the red head. Roserade, Glaceon, Butterfree, Masquerade and Venasuar put their bets on May and Drew hooking up during the return journey. Only Brock's Sudowoodo bet on it happening before they left to continue on their contest journey. All the other pokemon placed berry bets on these couplings, as well as the chances of Brock ever getting a girlfriend to various times. What non of the other pokemon expected was Weavile stepping into the group and placing a bet of 2 citrus berries and 2 oran berries on Paul and Dawn getting together in general. The bet was so outrageous that Paul's Torterra, Magmar, Electivire, Honchcrow, and Ursaring choked on the food they were eating. Piplup, Buneary, Pachirisu and Ambipom made horrified expressions. The sudden coughing of his pokemon and the tortured expressions on Dawn's pokemon made Paul wonder what Weavile had just said to the losers' pokemon.

Rather curious Pikachu asked Weavile where it got an idea like that, Weavile felt that it was only fair to share what it had witnessed with all the pokemon that were listening, which just happened to be all of them.

_-Flashback-_

_ Though Weavile had been put back in it's pokeball it was far too curious about what was going on between it's owner and the blue haired female it rather liked the smell of, she always smelled of vanilla and lilies, a combination that was very soothing. What their trainers didn't know was that the pokemon could hear everything going on outside if they wanted to hear what was going on. This being one of those instances Weavile focused it's hearing on nothing but the outside._

_ It heard the woman known as Nurse Joy tell Paul that he should ask Dawn for directions to the party where all the other trainers and their pokemon were. Weavile could just picture the look of disgust on Paul's face, but was rather relieved when it heard him walk on to what it hoped was Dawn's room._

_ The walk seemed to last forever since Paul could only go so fast with his injured leg. When he stopped Weavile heard Paul take in a deep breathe as if to calm himself for a huge feat. Another minute passed before there was a sharp sound of a knock on a door. Even in it's muffling pokeball Weavile heard the faint voice that responded," Wh-who is it?" Though the voice was faint the waver indicating crying was clear. _

_ A curse from Paul then his reply," It's Paul."_

_ More silence, the sound of the door opening and Dawn's voice much louder asked," What is it?"_

_ Weavile felt the pokeball jiggle from Paul's readjusting his weight, a sign of tension. Weavile imagined that Paul, though uncomfortable was still staring straight at Dawn who was possibly partially concealed by the door while avoiding his stare. Paul's voice, to a human, would sound as stern as ever, but Weavile picked up the faint tint of restraint when he spoke,"I forgive you for slapping me. Now suck it up and get me to the stupid picnic."_

_ Weavile didn't know Dawn well enough to think of Dawn's reaction to this uncommon action made by Paul, but her soft reply of," Uh, sure, just give me a second" caused Weavile to let out a sigh of relief. Paul gave a little grunt to accept this and waited when the door closed._

_ Weavile was about to relax and take a quick nap, but snapped back to attention at the sound of the door opening once more and a new noise came to Weavile's notice. It was a sound a pokemon learned to recognize during it's first few days in the pokeball. It was the trainer's heart beat. After about a week of travel with a trainer a pokemon learns to rely on the steady beat of a trainer's heart as means of calming themselves down after a battle or contest. Weavile only noticed it at that moment because it became louder and irregular, which had never happened to Paul before. _

_ "S-something wrong Paul?" Dawn's voice was confused and concerned, something must have seemed different on Paul's face or in his stance for her to be able to pick up on it._

_ "Nothing. Let's go." Paul's voice was gruff, as if he needed to clear his throat._

_ If Weavile hadn't been an overly observant pokemon it wouldn't understand what was going on, but having overheard other pokemon talk about how humans were strange when it came to their attraction to the opposite gender. Instead of immediately telling the one they were interested their feelings a human would be cruel, teasing or indirect for days if not months or even years before getting together with the human they had interest in. But just like pokemon it was apparent when a human had interest in another because they would blush or their heart beat would become irregular for a span of a second or sometimes a minute depending on the situation. Remembering all this Weavile thought for a second, _ '_ Does Paul feel attraction towards Dawn...That would be nice.'_

_ -End Flashback-_

As Weavile had talked the trainers had all taken notice that the pokemon were all gathered around Weavile. Brock had been the first to notice when Happiny had left his lap to join the other pokemon thinking Weavile was telling a big story like Brock did sometimes. Brock watched with interest as Weavile told the story with all the pokemon listening avidily.

Paul took notice next, he got a slight tingling sensation that Weavile was talking about him when some of the pokemon cast him a sideways glance once or twice.

"What's going on with the pokemon?" May voiced her question in a whisper so not to make the pokemon conscious that they were being watched by their trainers.

Brock shrugged to his friends when they sent him a glance as if he knew. They watched the pokemon up until the end, once Weavile stopped talking the pokemon went into deep discussion. Paul's pokemon were quite determined to rant at Weavile for whatever the topic of the story was. What was weird was that Piplup and Pachirisu were also ranting at Weavile along with Paul's pokemon, all the other pokemon talked amongst their own groups.

Deciding that the pokemon could keep the secret to themselves Brock got to his feet and stretched, drawing the other trainer's attention back to him. Smiling he announced," Since we've mostly eaten why don't we start the festivities?"

May and Misty shot their hands into the air asking in synchronization," Can we go first?"

Brock nodded then went over to his knapsack to pull out a mini portable CD player. Seeing this Paul had to ask with a bad feeling already rising in his gut," What the hell are you freaks doing now?"

"Right, you were a last minute invitation. Well we've arranged a couple performances for the pokemon's entertainment. You're welcome to take a walk for a few minutes, cause it's really only three little shows." Drew explained this while going into his own bag and pulling out a green bandana that looked a lot like May's, Ash took out a red one and Brock took out an orange bandana. May and Misty were on their feet trying to figure out where best to perform.

Paul felt no urge to get up what with the amount of effort thanks to his leg. To the green haired pretty boy he didn't know the name of he replied," Thanks for the warning, but I'm sure I can tolerate anything you can torture me with."

Drew shrugged and joined the other two guys in adjusting their bandanas and putting on matching t-shirts. (Misty and May made absolutely sure that they didn't look at Ash and Drew, getting bloody noses with no explanation would be a horrible mood killer for the day.)

The pokemon clued into what was going on (they were told the night before that they would get to see some entertainment at the expense of their trainers) and quieted down to take a seat and eagerly wait for it to start.


	5. Single Ladies

**J: "Sweating" So uh...yea...This hasn't been updated in AGES has it? I can see many glares being put in my direction right now, but hey, it's still getting updated right? So...Please don't kill me? **

**THANKS TO:** Lightwolfheart, AnimexLuver4Ever, Splitheart1120, DGMSilverAirhead03, AikoAkahana(x2), IvyBean, Angelic Sakura Blossom, clover123ie, Obsessionist97

**DISCLAIMER: ME NO OWNEE POKEMON OR PEOPLE!**

**WARNING: This is actually the first kinda song fic thing I've ever done, so it is likely to epically fail. AS WELL! Since I'm working on a major Transformers project right now there is no promise that this will be updated regularly, I will try and squeeze this in if I can!**

* * *

**Chapter Four – Single Ladies  
**

" Misty, May, are you ready?" Brock was over by the mini CD player having finished changing first, Drew and Ash were still trying to put on their fake goatees and moustaches (which Pikachu was laughing hysterically at since it had snuck a peek.)

Since they didn't want to ruin there built up hype the girls just gave a thumbs up. Brock eagerly hit the play button and immediately liked the girls' choice for a song. It was _Single Ladies_ by Beyonce. (pokenav's get internet too xD)

Their hips moving side to side with the bass beat Misty mouthed the lead and May mouthed the echo. Ash and Drew paused in putting on their facial hair to stare in slack jawed wonder, for a reason they couldn't explain their eyes really wanted to focus on the girls' lower back. With much restraint they spun around and got back to work on their faces, but much faster than before.

_All the single ladies (All the single ladies)All the single ladies (All the single ladies)All the single ladies (All the single ladies)All the single ladiesNow put your hands up_

Misty effectively spun on her heel to start lip synching with the first verse and strut back and forth with a rather angry expression on her face. May had agreed with Misty's choice of song after she explained how the first verse tied in with her own life. Sure the first few years of Ash's journey had been with her, but once they had separated she was disheartened to receive letters saying how he'd made friends with a new female every time he went to a new region. First was May, then Dawn, and then the last girl she couldn't remember the name of from the Unova region.

_Up in the club, we just broke upI'm doing my own little thingYou decided to dip but now you wanna tripCuz another brother noticed meI'm up on him, he up on meDont pay him any attentionCuz I cried my tears, for three good yearsYa can't be mad at me_

May spun around and joined Misty to synch the chorus and make the appropriate actions to indicate that they should be wearing a ring on their finger. For the next verse Misty spun back around to let May have the spot light. After looking over the lyrics May had found that the second verse actually matched an incident that happened between her and Drew not too long ago. While on the boat to the Sinnoh region Drew and May had had times where they were by themselves but still in each other's sights. May had decided to use one of these moments to show her developing body and do some sun tanning out on the deck. What she hadn't planned on was another, rather disgusting guy, come up and start hitting on her right in front of Drew. The look that had crossed Drew's face was between envy (she would never understand what he was envious of him for when Drew looked so much better) and regret. She hoped that the regret was due to the fact that he didn't have the right to go up and claim her as his girlfriend to fend off the chubby pokefanatic.

_I got gloss on my lips, a man on my hipshold me tighter than my Dereon jeansacting up, drink in my cupI couldnt care less what you thinkI need no permission, did I mentionDont pay him any attentionCuz you had your turnBut now you gonna learnWhat it really feels like to miss me_

Misty rejoined May on the chorus for some rather tricky dance steps that included ballet mixed with hip hop, Ash and Drew were flabbergasted. They never knew the girls they had known for years were that flexible (what they also didn't know was that they had spent more than one full night working on those dance moves.)

_Cuz if you liked it then you should have put a ring on itIf you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on itDon't be mad once you see that he want itIf you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it_

_Wuh uh oh uh uh oh oh uh oh uh uh ohWuh uh oh uh uh oh oh uh oh uh uh oh_

The girls ended the song earlier to be fair to the guys, but they made sure to end with a flourish and put their backs to the audience. When the music cut off the pokemon cheered in approval, Brock, Drew and Ash applauded as well, though deep down they were feeling a little overwhelmed now. Their performance wasn't going to be nearly as sassy or choreographed as the girls.

Getting into position while the girls made themselves comfortable on the grass with their pokemon Ash, Drew and Brock had to remind themselves that this was for nothing but fun for the Pokemon, so as long as they enjoyed it then they had done a good job.

* * *

**J: Since it's been FOREVER since I worked on this I cannot remember what I was going to get the little boy band to lip sync. SO! You the readers and reviewers can choose! The one I agree with the most will get picked :3**


	6. Their Message True to Your Heart

**J: Here's another update! Sorry it's another shorty, but it seems more appropriate to give each performance it's own space don't you think? And I wasn't surprised by the lack of reviews I got, with that huge gap of update absence I would give up on a fanfiction too ahha.**

**THANKS TO:** Splitheart1120, Aiko Akahana, Lightwolfheart, AnimexLuverx4Ever, IvyBean, DGMSilverAirhead03

**DISCLAIMER: ME NO OWNEE!**

* * *

**Chapter Five - Their Message**

The boys got into position just as the girls had with their backs turned to the audience. Out of the three of them Ash had done more than enough embarrassing things to handle this performance, Brock didn't mind too much since there weren't any beautiful women (Joy or Jenny) present to watch, Drew on the other hand had Beautiflies pounding against the insides of his stomach with the constant thought of what May would think of him after the performance. The song they'd chosen held some honesty for him and he hoped May would pick up on it.

Dawn hit the 'play' button and joined the other girls with a little giggle at the opening chords of the song they immediately recognized. It was _True To Your Heart _by 98 Degrees. Paul rolled his eyes and chose to not watch by flopping down onto his back.

They spun around together with Brock taking the lead for the first chorus. He'd jumped at the chance to do the first part since it reflected his feelings for both Officer Jenny and Nurse Joy every time he saw them, Ash and Drew didn't argue since it was the later verses that showed their feelings.

_Baby I knew at once That you were meant for me Deep in my soul I know That I'm your destiny Though you're unsure Why fight the tide Don't think so much Let your heart decide Baby I see your future And it's tied to mine I look in your eyes And see you searching for a sign But you'll never fall 'Til you let go Don't be so scared Of what you don't know_

The girls (and any Pokemon that's seen Brock around Jenny and Joy) could immediately tell his words were being dedicated to the two important women. His eyes had taken on that special romantic shine when seeing them or any other beautiful girl. He'd said many embarrassing things when attempting to romance Jenny and Joy, but the lyrics from this song made them feel a little bit bad for the guy. His chances of ever hooking up with either woman were very slim, but he kept trying and that was a redeeming quality for all woman to look for in their men.

_True to your heart You must be true to your heart That's when the heavens will part And baby shower you with my love Open your eyes Your heart can tell you no lies And when you're true to your heart I know it's gonna lead you straight to me (Got to be true to your heart) Someone you know is on your side Can set you free I can do that for you If you believe in me Why second-guess What feels so right Just trust your heart And you'll see the light True to your heart You must be true to your heart That's when the heavens will part And baby shower you with my love Open your eyes Your heart can tell you no lies And when you're true to your heart I know it's gonna lead you straight to me (Got to be true to your heart)_

The boys looked ridiculous lip syncing the main chorus, they'd put together very literal motions that involved pointing to their heart and eyes a lot, Dawn, Misty and May couldn't help but snicker and giggle every once in a while. The Pokemon, Buneary in particular, was just loving it and cheered them on more. They did some fancy foot work that put Drew front and center and Ash and Brock in the back.

_(Ya know it's true) Your heart knows what's good for you (Good for you) Let your heart show you the way (Ya know it's true) It'll see you through (Got to be true to your heart) Girl my heart is driving me to where you are You can take both hands off the wheel and Still get far Be swept away enjoy the ride You won't get lost With your heart to guide you_

Drew had read these words and immediately agreed with them. Time and time again during May's first year as a coordinator had put her in Drew's path, and each encounter had given him a glance of the woman she would grow up to be. That woman was someone he would love to keep by his side. One moment he would cherish in particular was when they were put together on the Wynaut's island. The Wynaut had saved both of them twice and they returned the favour by stopping Team Rocket. In-between events he had gotten closer to May then ever, and it solidified all his thoughts about her. She was head strong, determined, and above all, very cute when angry. Any chance he could get was spent teasing her to make her pout and fume, he would then repair any damage with a rose that she always accepted. Drew hoped that one day she would accept not only his rose but his purest feelings as well.

They'd edited the song a bit to cut out another full round of the chorus and let Ash take the final verse right after drew.

_When things are getting crazy And you don't know where to start Keep on believing baby Just be true to your heart When all the world around you It seems to fall apart Keep on believing baby Just be true to your heart_

Ash didn't mind doing this part of the song because it spoke some truth about his thoughts towards Misty. She was a brilliant water pokemon trainer and gym leader, but her temper would sometimes lead her to problems, and if not her own temper then just the wishes of other (such as her sisters.) Ash wasn't entirely certain about the depth of his feelings towards Misty yet, but he would always admire her ability to get out of situations with her own power or with the help of others. Her mermaid performance had imprinted on his mind a Misty that could be breathe taking but clear headed. The incident with Red Gyarados had been one of the scariest things he'd ever seen and he still pondered on how Misty had come to get the untameable beast to respect her. He would never abandon a call for help from her, he would even stop his journey for her. To him these words were his way of telling her that when things were too chaotic for her to handle alone she would just have to put a little faith in him.

After another round of the main chorus they ended in very boy band like poses. The girls and pokemon applauded, though the girls were out right laughing now. Not at the song but at the weird poses. Ash was pointing out to the left with one hand over his heart, Drew was pointing out to the right with a rose in his mouth, and Brock was in the middle looking like a modelling body builder with both arms flexed above and beneath him.

Laughing a little himself Ash ripped off the fake facial hair," Your turn Dawn. You ready?"

"Yup, I just need to talk to Piplup, Buneary and Cyndaquil for a second. Come here guys." Dawn stood up and brushed herself off, her three named Pokemon followed her away from the group just as confused as all the others. Paul had his eyes closed throughout the performance the losers had done and now cracked an eye open to look to where Dawn was crouched down talking to her Pokemon. The smallest bit of curiosity surfaced when he saw the Pokemon gawk at their trainer like she'd grown a second head. She talked to them a bit more and they calmed down to smile.

"Okay, now I'm ready!" Dawn all but skipped over the performance area that was now quite flattened by the boys' wide arrangement of boy band dance moves.

Non of the Pokemon present had ever seen really perform, only the other trainers. They didn't know if they were going to get a grand finale, or a grand joke.


	7. Real Emotion

**J: "Sigh" You guys really need another author to work on this, my updating time is horrible and my writing doesn't do my thoughts justice T.T Okay, I'm done complaining about myself! Sorry this took forever to come out but it took a movie viewing with my sister to get my drive going to finish this chapter, and I'm in the progress of working on the next chapter now. Hope you guys enjoy this new chapter!**

Dislciamer: I don't own pokemon, or the song used in this chapter.

* * *

**Chapter Six - Real Emotions**

Dawn's nerves were all over the place. Throughout the night she'd managed to calm herself down about performing in front of her friends, she just kept telling herself that she was putting on a coordinator show by herself and she didn't need to do any battles. She even looked in a mirror in the morning and pointed at her reflection saying, 'Dawn, use sing!' She of course then laughed at herself and felt much better. But the unexpected addition of Paul was really messing with her confidence. May and Misty told her just to ignore him, that's what they did, but how could she when she had yelled and slapped the guy earlier. She still felt a bit guilty about it and was acutely aware of Paul's presence.

She took in a deep calming breathe, closed her eyes and gave a nod for Brock to start the music. The opening voices of the backup singers had Misty and May squealing in delight. Dawn had decided to go with her favourite song '_ReaL Emotions' _by Jade from Sweetbox, though the song originated from an old game called 'Final Fantasy X-2.'

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_I can hear you_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_Far beyond the hazy borders of my heart_

_I could see a place that's something like this_

_Every now and then I don't know what to do_

_Still I know that I can never go back_

The song had come from the opening sequence where the character performing it had done a dance with two projected attractive back up dancers. Dawn had sort of memorized the dance steps and tried to mimic them while singing. It took more effort than lip syncing but the song was too beautiful to just mouth to, she could never only listen, she always had to sing along. As she moved she used restraint to not look over at Paul to see if he was watching, to see if he was judging her with those cruel eyes of his.

_But the things I've seen in those hazy dreams_

_Can't compare to what I'm seeing now_

_Everything's so different_

_That it brings me to my knees_

_And though I know the world of real emotion has surrounded me_

_I won't give in to it_

_Now I know that forward is the only way my heart can go_

_I hear your voice calling out to me:_

_"You'll never be alone_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_I can hear you_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

Dawn made a swing of her arm, the signal for her pokemon to go forward with her plan. Piplup, Buneary and Cindaquil moved from the main group to get behind her. Dawn's smile got a bit bigger as the song suddenly quieted, she'd fiddled with it so there was a decent lull. She spread her arms out and waited to hear the audience reactions. Piplup used bubble beam at the same time Buneary used ice beam, the dress Dawn was wearing turned into an ice cube. The music began to pick up and Cindaquil used flamethrower. Trainers and Pokemon alike watched in awe as the dress melted away with the ice to reveal a second outfit. In place of the dress was a sleeveless navy blue top that tied around the neck letting her back and mid-drift show. Her lower half had a matching skirt that ended around the knees and was patterned with bubbles along the bottom.

_I don't plan on looking back on my old life_

_I don't ever plan to rely on you_

_Even if by chance everything should go wrong_

_You'd come anyway and try to save me_

_Though from time to time it's an upward climb_

_All I know is that I must believe_

_'Cause the truth I'm seeking_

_Always was inside of me_

_And when I find the world of real emotion has surrounded me_

_The many things that you taught me then_

_Will always be enough to get me through the pain_

_Because of you I am strong enough to know I'm not alone_

Paul didn't show it but he was enthralled by the performance like everyone else. The song wasn't too interesting but the magic trick with her dress left him puzzled, he wouldn't be at peace until he figured out the trick. He glanced over at his Pokemon, all of them were watching without blinking like the other Pokemon. All the losers were smiling in awe, he rolled his eyes. Paul reclined back and closed his eyes to just listen to the music and figure out the trick to the changing clothes, he didn't expect the lyrics of the song to start sinking in. Certain parts of the verses made him wonder if Troublesome was singing because of something in her past or if she just liked this song. The recurring theme of being on her own and handling her emotions began to gnaw at him. He didn't care about others, but the song was starting to make him reflect on his mother. This in turn brought up another condition of the girl he would accept as a potential girlfriend. She can't be overly emotional or a suck up for attention. Being a pokemon coordinator didn't count as an attention hog because it was just a different, more pathetic, version of the leagues. Paul growled inwardly at the fact that Troublesome had qualified for two of his four requirements, she would never meet his third and fourth conditions so he let the thought slip.

_And if I find the real world of emotion has surrounded me_

_And I can't go on_

_You are there the moment that I close my eyes to comfort me_

_We are connected for all of time_

_I'll never be..._

_And though I know the world of real emotion has surrounded me_

_I won't give in to it_

_Now I know that forward is the only way my heart can go_

_I hear your voice calling out to me:_

_"You'll never be alone"_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_I can hear you_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_What can I do for you?_

_I can hear you_

_I can hear you_

Dawn finished the song with a twirl and bow. The guys whistled and cheered while the Pokemon sent out their own cries of approval, Weavile among them. Blushing from the praise Dawn walked over to Piplup, Buneary, and Cyndaquil ,"You three were great, I didn't get hurt at all." The three Pokemon took in the praise with smiles and let their egos inflate just a bit for their precise use of their abilities.

"That trick was amazing Dawn, how did you do it?" May looked over Dawn's outfit for any little clues to the trick.

A mischievous smirk on her face Dawn sat down not far from Paul (to sit next to her Pokemon since they were situated next to him), wagging a finger she chided, "A magician never reveals their secrets." Misty and May chorused along "Awwww" but laughed realizing they'd done the same thing.

Paul looked over at Dawn's back since it was facing him and caught sight of something on the skin on her back. It looked like a blue drop of water. Not even bothering to consider the consequences of his actions he reached over and took the drop off her back onto his finger. Dawn froze upon contact with a blush on her cheeks. Drew, Brock and Ash, being privy to the knowledge of females and their love of personal space knew Paul had just done something that would bring death upon him. May and Misty watched with dropped jaws as Paul observed the drop then put it in his mouth. " I'm impressed Troublesome. That first outfit was made of tissue paper and sugar."

Her trick being revealed brought Dawn out of her heart coma. Spinning around on him with fire burning in her eyes she all but yelled, "You jerk! You not only went over the personal space boundaries you ruined the magic!"

"I touched you, big deal. And there wasn't any magic just an illusion. You're making a fuss over nothing." Paul closed his eyes with his arms under his head for cushion. The other guys prayed to Arceus for Paul's soul and May and Misty were just about ready to join Dawn in beating the snot out of the injured cocky trainer.

Her face red with anger than embarrassment Dawn got to her feet and stormed off growling something about picking berries. " You just got very lucky Paul. I bet if it wasn't a special day Dawn would have done you more damage than that Ursaring." Brock's words were brushed off with a small grunt sounding a lot like "as if." Five minutes later Paul was still trying to figure out who had flicked small rocks at his head.


End file.
